Orb of Thesulah

Orb of Thesulah
Plot element from the Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel franchise
First appearance	Buffy the Vampire Slayer "Passion" (February 24, 1998)
Created by	(Series) Joss Whedon (Episode) Ty King
Genre	Fantasy
In-story information
Type	Mystical orb
Function	Focus for a spell that restores a vampire's soul.

In both Buffy and Angel series, the Orb of Thesulah is used in a Gypsy ritual by the Kalderash clan to restore a vampire's soul, most notably Angel.

Appearances and description

In the Buffy the Vampire Slayer series, the orbs are used to bring a soul from the nether realms and contain it until it can be put back into its original body. They first appear in episode 7 of season 2 of the show, called Passion when Jenny Calendar purchases one from a magic shop in an effort to harness Angels's soul after it is lost when he experiences a moment of pure happiness. In this episode it is stated by the magic shop owner that the orb is useless without a translation of the Ritual of Restoration, as this is the only spell that it can be used with. Jenny finally uses a computer programme to translate the ritual but she is found out by Drusilla and the orb is destroyed.

Following this Willow Rosenberg sources another orb and completes the ritual in the season 2 finale, Becoming. The ritual is successful and Angel's soul is restored just in time for him to be run through by Buffy and sucked into a vortex leading to a hell dimension.

An orb also appeared in the episode "Orpheus" from Angel's own spinoff series, as Angel's soul had again been displaced, this time on purpose. This time it doesn't go as well, as outside forces conspire to disrupt the ritual.

The orb appears in such novels as City of Angel.^[1]

Recently the Orb of Thesulah has been referenced in Supernatural, a show on the CW network. In season 7 episode 7 entitled 'The Mentalists', this orb is believed to be contained inside a necklace that is being passed around to psychics before their deaths, but is likely fake as it has "Made in Taiwan" engraved on the back.

Reception

Nikki Stafford writes that although it is comical that Rupert Giles uses the orb as a paperweight, "it seems strange he wouldn't have offered it earlier for a restoration spell, or why Jenny doesn't see it in his office."^[2]

References

1. ^ Greenwalt, David; Holder, Nancy; Whedon, Joss (1999). City of Angel. Simon and Schuster. p. 59. ISBN 9780743432795. 
2. ^ Stafford, Nikki (2007). Bite Me!: The Unofficial Guide to Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Chosen Edition. ECW Press. p. 181. ISBN 9781550228076. 

 3. ^Robert R. Hughes as seen on Supernatural the series on the CW channel November 5 2011